Integration or competition?

German MEP Bernd Posselt, known in the CR for supporting the interests of Sudeten Germans, accused Václav Klaus of leading the Czechs into a dead end with his views on the EU constitution. Posselt told the FAZ that Europe needs to overcome nationalism and turn itself into a peaceful world power that can assert itself against the U.S., Russia and Asia. He said this just days before Germany, France and others set aside the cross- border services directive. Although it was important to the CR, Stanislav Gross voted against it, as a way to help France pass its referendum on the EU constitution. This episode could help Klaus in his campaign against the constitution. He can argue that it's the French, Germans and Gross who are leading Europe into a dead end. In the interest of greater integration, they killed a measure that would have made the EU more competitive. [Czech Republic Eurpean Union Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung competitiveness]